Chapter 24

Aragorn was hoping that he never saw another bramble bush in his life as he pushed his way between the prickly shrubs encroaching onto the ever narrowing path through the forest. In the days since Elrohir's unorthodox rescue of his twin they had been unhindered on their way by all except these thorny irritants and although that should have made him glad he could not help but worry. There had been neither sight nor sound of any other living creature, fair or foul and that was most unnatural. Stumbling over a root he cursed aloud as a long needle scraped down his left cheek and raised a hand to angrily dash away the small beads of blood beginning to well up from the cut.

"How much longer must we fight through this cursed land?" He growled and slashed vigorously with his long knife at the bush from which the offending thorns had come. "We most surely should have come upon the fortress by now."

"Aye, Estel." Elladan calmly replied whilst allowing a gap to open up between himself and the young man, mindful of the swinging blade. "I feel we ought to have arrived long before now."

"Tis this forest." The youngest twin grimly stated as he followed lightly in his brothers footsteps. "The paths never lie straight and true but bend with its will." He smiled ruefully. "According to the stories, many have been left to wander here for season upon season without end, or until they finally perished of old age."

"Hah!" The young man exclaimed as he continued hacking unmercifully at the shrubbery. "That I can well believe. Oh!"

The dense bushes had finally given way and the young man found himself standing at the edge of the forest looking out onto a swathe of grassy hillocks that gradually rose up into the distance forming a hill, atop of which was a dark, forbidding stone fortress. They had finally reached their goal.

"Dol Guldur."

Aragorn felt the hairs stand up on the back of his neck at Elladan's low whisper as the twins moved to flank him.

"Aye," Elrohir nodded. "At last we are here."

Relief flooded through the young man as he stood, staring at the distant tower they had been striving to reach for so long. Relief, yet also dread.

"Hold on, mellon nin, hold on." A choked whisper was all he could manage whilst desperately fending off the tears that threatened to fall, tears would not help Legolas. He swallowed hard and silently prayed that they were not already too late.

"Come, Estel," Elrohir's soft tones accompanied by the gentle hand placed upon his shoulder radiated comfort and Aragorn turned his head to smile his thanks. "Let us make camp here under the trees whilst we decide upon our next moves."

"If we do not stray too far back into the forest we will not get lost again." The elder twin mused aloud whilst surveying the area, "And hopefully we will be sheltered from any prying eyes from yonder." He continued and nodded in the direction of the fortress. "Over here. This will do nicely."

Aragorn and Elrohir moved to where their brother was busy casting off his pack behind a large and twisted alder flanked by two of the dreaded hawthorn bushes.

"From here we can see out, but none should be able to see us in the shadows." Elladan lowered himself, to sit cross-legged on the leafy ground pulled his pack close and untied it to rummage inside. "Somewhere I think I have a little," he smiled suddenly, drawing out his hand, "Ah yes. I knew I had it somewhere." Clutched within his fingers was a small, silver flask, delicately engraved with an entwined star and crown. Unscrewing the chased top he took a sip then handed it over to his twin.

"Miruvor?" Elrohir took a small taste before passing it on. "You kept that quiet, muindor."

"Aye, well, I thought it best to keep it until I deemed it would be most appreciated." Elladan smiled.

"Hannon le," Aragorn handed the flask back to his eldest brother with a grin. "I must admit to being glad of its comfort now."

The trio seated themselves in a ring, their packs between them, allowing themselves a few minutes as the Miruvor's warmth spread through body and mind, like a mothers hug, bringing peace and calm to overtasked nerves.

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~o~

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Slash, parry, stab.

The elf fought with almost clockwork precision, such a wild and feral look upon his face that his opponents felt themselves quail before him. That he enjoyed his work was patently obvious from the argent gleam held within his darkened eyes and the visible arousal barely hidden by his close fitting breeches. As ever he fought bare chested, his pale skin mottled with the blood and gore of those he had battled against, apparently revelling in each new splatter. It did not seem to matter how many were pitted against him, his rhythm never changed, he was indefatigable. His eyes raked the arena, noting that all others had fallen before, with a final lunge he skewered the last of his adversaries through the stomach, reached out to take his shoulder in an iron grip with his free hand and twisted his long knife slowly around thus enlarging the wound moaning at the scream it elicited. Licking his suddenly dry lips the elf caught and held the fear wide eyes before him in an incendiary gaze before slowly pulling the blade upwards, shuddering in pleasure at the slippery feeling of warm intestines as they spilled over his hand. As the light finally faded from his opponents eyes he ripped his knife free, allowing the disfigured body to crumple to the floor in a grotesque heap and stood, panting, blade held loosely pointing to the floor, head tilted back, face up to the ceiling with eyes closed, revelling in the afterglow of his sated body.

It was a few moments before he regained his composure and lowered his gaze to wander over the scene of destruction he had wrought. Elves and men lay all about, their limbs and bodies bearing testament to his prowess with the blade, the sight drawing a complacent smile on his angular features. He looked down at the horribly maimed figure at his feet, staring in fascination at the pale tubular innards sprayed out from the huge gash running up its torso. Finally tearing his eyes away from the gory sight he caught sight of the corpse's half concealed face and for a second his heart stopped within his chest. A sense of familiarity nagged at his mind. Kneeling down, obliviously, in the dead combatants spreading pool of blood he leaned forward to push a thick strand of long, dark hair out of the way to reveal features as familiar as his own. With a gasp he lurched to his feet, backing away until he felt a hard, unyielding presence behind him and a pair of strong arms encircled him, pulling him close.

"You have done well, my son."

The sibilant whisper in his ear sent shivers up and down his spine and the elf leaned back into the comforting presence.

"Remember who it is that cares for you, loves you."

"You do master."

The quavered response was enough to make the witch king want to laugh aloud.

"Aye. I do." Tempering his feelings he continued to breathe his words into the elf's responsive ear. "And remember who abandoned you, cast you out. Vilified you."

"They did." The trembling elf allowed his gaze to drop once more to the mangled corpse of his final adversary, his features twisted with pain. "He did."

"And now he has paid,"

The elf felt a hand begin to run gently up and down his left arm.

"And so must his sons."

The caress continued and combined with the whispered draft of his master's words to quicken both heartbeat and breath.

"Yes, master."

With a satisfied sigh the witch king gently turned the elf around in his arms before breaking the embrace and leading him gently out of the room. Behind them, the glamour placed over the elf's erstwhile opponents faded and as the lord's servants began to remove the corpses of the unfortunate orcs who had been ordered into the fight the dark tresses, gently tapered ears and stern, half elven features had resolved once more into the twisted mien of the dark creature that he truly was.

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~o~

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Lying on his stomach in a damp, grassy hollow at the edge of the forest, Aragorn watched the dark shadow that was his eldest brother inching away like a worm in the gathering dusk. The trio had decided that a survey of the fortress would be best undertaken at night, when the cover of darkness would allow closer inspection even though it also meant orc activity would be higher. There had been quite a fierce debate about who it was that should be the one to undertake said reconnaissance but Elladan had finally brow beaten his brothers into submission and achieved the honour, if such it could be called. So it was that Aragorn and the youngest twin lay in the grass watching their eldest sibling disappearing into the gloom, both whispering pleas to the Valar to watch over and bring him back safe and unharmed.

Once Elladan was no longer visible, even to keen elven eyes, they made their way back under the shelter of the trees to a small clearing they had chosen as a rendezvous to await his return. This would be the worst part of their plan, although both knew well the prowess their brother held they could not help but worry and realised this night would be very long indeed.

Elladan felt the night swallow him up as he crept forwards through the grass towards his goal like a shadow stretching itself out from its anchor. He could not say he felt no fear, yet there was also exhilaration mixed within as the anticipation of finally being able to rescue his long-time friend grew stronger. He had abhorred the length of time spent traversing the forest and the many obstacles that had been placed in their paths, growing more and more frustrated as the time had passed. It finally felt so good to actually being able to do something constructive at last.

Wriggling into a grassy dip behind a particularly high hummock he manoeuvred into a low crouch and peered out into the darkness. It was difficult to make out any detail under the glow of the pale half-moon that hung in the sky but there was just enough light for his purpose. His was not to make an in depth study of the fortress before him but to garner enough information as to the movements of those within, where lay the entrances and exits and the patterns of any guard patrols in use. Intelligence that would prove most useful in their plans on how best to rescue Legolas from the evil place that lay before him. Realising he had need to gain closer access the half elf scanned the area for a suitable spot then began to move once more, crouching low, dipping from hummock to hummock until he gained a large hollow at the foot of the hill upon which the fortress had been built.

Emboldened by the fact that no hue and cry had yet apparently been raised he waited for a few moments, eyes fixed upon the structure above, before beginning to move once more, this time circling the base of the hill stealthily, moving from shadow to shadow, under cover of the rocky outcrops that jutted from the side of the hill. In this manner he had eventually run the full circle of the hill yet had seen nothing of note from above. He must move closer still if his observances were to be of any use.

Taking a deep breath the half elf began to climb up one of the craggy prominences, feeling his way carefully so as to avoid causing any loose stones to betray his presence. A sudden movement above caught the corner of his sight and he froze in position, body pressed firmly against the rock, eyes half veiled and slowly scanning the area without moving his head. A shape gradually emerged out of the gloom, hulking and huge against the backdrop of the starlit sky. Footsteps crunched as if on gravel, then Elladan tensed and pushed his face and body harder against the rock as a shower of small pebbles danced their way from overhead, before hitting his shoulders and continuing on their way down the hillside. There was a rustling of cloth and a low grunt as the creature shuffled closer to the edge and for a moment Elrond's oldest son though he was about to be discovered until the first few drops of a noisome liquid pattered down upon his head. Realisation quickly dawned and closing his eyes and mouth tight and desperately trying not to breathe he could do naught as the shower of acidic, warm liquid increased, soaking him through to the very bone.

At last the flow came to a stuttering end and Elladan heard a guttural sigh of relief. Remaining as still as a boulder he awaited the creature's next move with trepidation, he may still be discovered yet. After a few, tension filled moments, there came a shuffling sound once more, followed by the tramp of heavy footsteps receding into the distance and all, at last, went quiet. The half elf allowed himself a small relieved sigh of his own, then wished he hadn't as the acrid tang of the beast's urine caught the back of his throat causing him to gag in response. He slowly unhooked the leather water skin from his belt and raised it to his lips. Taking a good mouthful he swirled it around in his mouth, in an effort to swill out the foul taste, before spitting it out and taking a long drink. Feeling slightly better for this he then tipped back his head and slowly poured a gentle stream of the clear fluid over his stinging eyes, blinking hard to flush away the acidic remnants and regain clarity of vision, listening intently all the while to ensure that he was, indeed, alone.

Breathing as shallowly as possible so as not to inhale too much of the scent arising from his saturated garments he eventually decided that it was safe enough to move on once more and carefully began to inch his way upwards until he was just under the spot he judged the orc to have been standing whilst relieving itself. He stilled his progress once more, listening for the slightest sound that may give any enemies position away but heard naught, the night seemed as still as the grave. Making a swift decision he reached up to grip the edge of the rocky overhang just above his head then pulled himself up so that his eyes were flush with its top.

Before him was a flat shelf of rock, peppered with gravel and large stones, which shelved away up to a dark, blank faced, stone wall. He had finally reached the fortress itself. Now the most difficult part of his nights work would begin.

A/N

I want to say a very big thank you to you all for being so patient with me over the time it is taking me to post these chapters. R/l is being extremely difficult at the moment and finding time to write is getting harder and harder. I have no intention of leaving this story unfinished, however.

A few mentions, as usual, must go to those wonderful people who have reviewed too, the awesome - Estaron, bettsam0731, sehellys, Obsidianglasses and NirCele. Big hugs all round!

Thanks also to everyone for reading and those who have added this story to their favourites, I do hope you continue to enjoy it. I couldn't do it without your support and kind words.

And Finally... DONT FORGET to let me know what you think!